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The Gulf region's leading men's luxury lifestyle magazine. For men who understand that the true value of luxury is its foundation in knowledge. Not so much a website, but an indispensable guide to life.

Subscribe to the magazine

The Gulf region's leading men's luxury lifestyle magazine. For men who understand that the true value of luxury is its foundation in knowledge. Not so much a website, but an indispensable guide to life.

Is this the strangest nightclub in Dubai?

October 15, 2014

Stilt walkers, contortionists, sword swallowers, fire eaters... no, we're not taking about the performers at a circus, we're actually describing the scene at a nightclub - well, a kind of circus-nightclub hybrid at least. After opening its first venue in London in 2009 and then expanding to Dubai in 2011, Cirque le Soir has evolved into becoming one of the world's most successful nightclub chains, thanks to its continual effort to push the boundaries of entertainment and give clubbers an experience they're not likely to forget in a hurry. The man charged with bringing this unforgettable experience to Dubai partygoers is Spanish-born Aleix Garcia, who, after spending an impressive eight seasons working in some of the top clubs in Ibiza, including the likes of El Divino, Ushuaia Beach Club and Downtown Cipriani, claims that, for entertainment value, Cirque trumps them all. We caught up with him to find out exactly what goes on inside the mysterious world of Cirque le Soir.

How would you describe the club?

Cirque le Soir is a fusion between a real circus and a fine club. Cirque has excellent service along with a very elaborate circus experience with real performers from all over the world. Cirque is the place you will definitely talk about the day after.

What makes the experience special and different from a regular club night?

Cirque is a unique experience. What concept in the world brings you real circus fire eaters, illusionists, aerialists, contortionists, burlesque dancers, dwarfs or giants while enjoying the best beats and great hospitality? The owners and managers have been real clubbers. We know what we like and we know what we don’t like when we party, so we offer what we like most - entertainment and great service. For all our customers, we work on experience enhancement at every level.

Who’s the craziest act you’ve ever had perform?

We don’t like disclosing details of the shows we do. We like surprising and tantalising our guests. Every day is a different event with respective shows around the theme of the day. If you don’t know, don’t worry.

You worked in Ibiza before Dubai. What are the main differences between the two club scenes?

Both markets are absolutely different. Let’s start from the base. Ibiza is a place to go on holiday, not a place to live permanently unless you can work from home or survive working only six months a year. With that said, when you’re on holiday, you don’t care if the bartender takes ages to serve you a drink, you don’t care if the music isn't good or even if the waiter is a bit rude. You’re on vacation. You don’t let anything ruin it. Dubai’s clientele is very demanding, therefore we have to adapt to customer demands. When it comes to service and customer care, Dubai beats Ibiza by leaps and bounds. You have to adapt to the markets’ demands. On the contrary, do you imagine being in a club with 2,000 or 5,000 people all on vacation, positive and in a complete party mood? That’s Ibiza.

What do you think of the quality of the club scene in the UAE in general?

The competition is very tough here, which is great for customers. We all need to be creative and improve every single day. You improve or you die out. Every season there are as many clubs opening as there are closing. The variety of clubs we have in the UAE, I would say, is excellent. There are all styles of clubbing, all kinds of music and for all tastes.

Your show is famed for being quite risqué. Does it have to be toned down for the Middle East? If so, how?

Yes it does. We are in the UAE and we have to respect the country’s regulations. In Dubai, we do not do the same shows we do in London or Shanghai - especially when it comes to the aspect of nudity. However, this also gives us the opportunity to be even more creative and tactile with the type of performances and entertainment we bring to the club.

What can we expect from Cirque Le Soir in the future?

A lot of entertainment and constant innovation. Cirque has a strong and passionate creative team behind it that strives to keep on surprising everyone. This season will bring a lot of surprises that will keep on making Cirque a very attractive clubbing experience. Details: visit Cirquelesoir.com

Subscribe to the magazine

The Gulf region's leading men's luxury lifestyle magazine. For men who understand that the true value of luxury is its foundation in knowledge. Not so much a website, but an indispensable guide to life.